Around 90 percent of diabetics in Germany have type 2 diabetes, also known as adult-onset diabetes. Everything about symptoms, causes and treatment.
Definition: What is diabetes type 2?
Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes mellitus – around 90 percent of the more than
five million diabetics in Germany, type 2 diabetics are. While type 1 diabetes usually develops in childhood or adolescence, type 2 diabetes occurs much later in life and is therefore colloquially called "adult-onset diabetes.". Usually affects people from the age of 40 at the earliest; type 2 diabetes is most common among people around 80 years of age.
Type 2 diabetes develops as a result of obesity, lack of exercise and an unhealthy diet. It can be amed that many people do not even know that they have type 2 diabetes – experts ame a Unrecognized cases From 40 to 50 percent from. Since obesity is the greatest risk factor for the disease, younger people and even children are increasingly affected.
Type 2 diabetes: The causes
Type 2 diabetes develops when the body's sugar metabolism is thrown into disarray. The pancreas produces too little insulin, and at the same time the hormone is unable to exert its effect sufficiently in the body, because as a result of a strong increase in weight a "Insulin resistance" has developed.
First, the muscles, adipose tie, and liver respond less well to the hormone from the pancreas than in healthy people because their cells no longer have enough docking sites for the hormone. Insensitivity to insulin often develops as a consequence of the so-called metabolic syndrome (the term describes the interaction of various risk factors for cardiovascular diseases such as obesity and high blood prere).
Initially, the body still tries to compensate for the hormone's lack of action by making the pancreas produce more of it. This has serious consequences: The organ is permanently overloaded, so that it eventually lowers insulin production and eventually stops it altogether. The Main risk factors for diabetes type 2 are:
– Obesity – lack of exercise – abdominal fat – high blood prere – smoking – a diet low in fiber, high in fat and sugar – some medications (e.g. B. diuretics, the "pill," blood prere medications, antidepressants)
Type 2 diabetes is not directly hereditary. However, it is believed that certain Gene constellations, that affect lipid metabolism, sugar intake, or insulin resistance, promote the disease, making a certain predisposition to type 2 diabetes heritable after all. More crucial than genes, however, are body weight, level of exercise, and diet: a slim person who eats a healthy diet and exercises a lot will not develop type 2 diabetes, even if his or her genetic makeup is rather unfortunate.
Diabetes type 2: The symptoms
For a long time, adult-onset diabetes causes no symptoms – many sufferers do not even suspect they are ill.
Important Signs are:
– severe thirst – frequent urination – fatigue – difficulty concentrating – dry skin – itching – frequent fungal infections of the skin and mucous membranes – itching in the genital area (often caused by fungal infections) – increased susceptibility to infections – urinary tract infections
If the disease has existed for a long time and is not treated, there is a risk of secondary diseases (see below). Sensory disturbances in the hands. feet or wound healing disorders are present. From the blood sample, he determines the fasting blood glucose value and the long-term blood glucose value (Hba1c). An oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), for which the patient must drink a sugar solution, shows how well the sugar metabolism is still functioning.
Type 2 diabetes: Which values are crucial?
Different blood glucose levels are crucial for diagnosing type 2 diabetes.
The following values are those of a healthy person:
– Fasting blood glucose:< 100 mg/dl – glucose tolerance test after two hours:< 140 mg/dl – Hba1c (long-term value): 4.5-5.7%
If these limits are exceeded, diabetes is not necessarily present. In the case of
fasting blood glucose of less than 125 mg/dl and a Hba1c from 5.7-6.4% Doctors still speak of "impaired glucose tolerance," a prerequisite for the Preliminary stage of diabetes mellitus type 2.
Diabetes mellitus is present when the Fasting blood glucose 126 mg/dl exceeds and the blood glucose value in the glucose tolerance test two hours after drinking the sugar solution over 200 lies.
At very high values, it becomes critical for those affected: if the values reach above 300, ketoacidosis occurs, in which the blood becomes overacidified. If the blood glucose rises to over 500, threatens that diabetic coma. For those affected it is life-threatening.
Diabetes type 2: The right treatment
To prevent secondary diseases, it is important for type 2 diabetics to bring their blood glucose levels back into a healthy range. Therapy usually begins with a Training, in which patients learn what they can change themselves and how to manage their diabetes. If the production of the body's own insulin has already dried up, the hormone must be supplied artificially – the correct insulin calculation is also part of patient training.
However, type 2 diabetes can often be treated with metformin. The active ingredient belongs to the so-called oral antidiabetics, which boost insulin production in the pancreas. The doctor can prescribe metformin alone, together with a second antidiabetic drug or in combination with insulin. Whether also Over-the-counter medications patients should discuss with their doctor whether they are eligible for any of the following medications from the pharmacy.
Diabetes type 2 is generally not completely curable. Doctors prefer to speak of a so-called Remission (in medicine, this means the temporary or permanent abatement of symptoms): If sufferers manage to reduce their weight to such an extent that the pancreas produces sufficient insulin for the lower body weight, the medication may sometimes be omitted.
The prerequisite for a type 2 diabetic to live completely without medication and no longer have to treat his or her disease is that the disease was detected at an early stage. If secondary diseases such as diabetic foot have already occurred, the medication cannot usually be discontinued.
In addition: If an affected person slips back into old behavioral patterns, i.e. eats unhealthily again and gains weight, the diabetes will also return. Therefore, it is not possible to speak of a cure in the classical sense.